It's Too Late For Us
by Hosh
Summary: Itachi dies and Sasuke tries to save him. This enrages Naruto, having to go through his hubby's cheating ways in previous years, and snaps. Sasuke pays the ultimate price for emotionally hurting Naruto while Sakura watches helplessly.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Zomg x.x So here's another attempt at a chapter-fic. If I end up taking forever between updates (and short chapters), let me apologize in advance. This still confuses me a bit with how I'm going to carry this out, but I think I'll take Lori's suggestion and do time skips when necessary. So... Let's see how far this goes! --

**It's Too Late For Us**

Blood spattered everywhere, gushing out from the gaping wound. The chirping of birds died down until it was no longer audible. Crimson eyes widened as more of the warm, slick liquid splattered onto the injury's inflicter. The wounded body slipped away from the bloodied hand and fell onto the ground with a soft thud. Blood continued to spill from the wound, gathering into a small pool staining the dew-covered grass.

Sasuke sunk down to his knees, staring at his hands as if he had just seen a ghost. He was horrified by the amount of dark crimson staining his pale hands. Slowly, he glanced up at the body hidden by the all-too-familiar black and red cloak.

A wild cheer could be heard in the background, though to Sasuke it seemed a thousand miles away. He ignored the cries from his teammates, urging him to come back so his injuries could be treated. Instead, the Uchiha crawled to the body to see his victim. When dull, crimson eyes matching his own cracked open, Sasuke snapped back into reality.

"Aniki! Nii-san, hang on! Don't die!" He was freaking out. The only thing that was on his mind in that moment was to get the wound to stop bleeding...

Thinking quickly, he turned back toward his teammates, his frightened expression giving his intentions away, "Sakura! Hurry, you have to...!"

A soft, choked chuckle emerged from the dying Uchiha, drawing his brother's attention.

"Foolish little brother... you... kill me... now you wish... to save me..." He coughed, fresh, thick trickles of blood rolling down the sides of his face. He glanced up at the fading image of Sasuke and gave one last, weak smirk before his head lolled to the side limply, dead.

"No... aniki... you can't..." Sasuke's voice wavered, vision blurring due to the tears welling up in his eyes. He felt something from within leave him, isolating him. That isolation was a strong, empty void making itself known, where it had been filled previously the past ten years by Itachi.

Itachi was dead. He was the one that killed him, and the blood on his hands proved it. He killed his brother, and now he felt so utterly alone.

Something inside Naruto stirred. Something deep inside, bringing fourth all of the instances where Sasuke went behind his back in order to see the now-deceased Uchiha Itachi. Ever since they first got together as genin, Sasuke turned around to see his bastard of a brother. Never had Naruto ever been given the same affection he saw Sasuke give to Itachi. Not once.

His subconscious brought forth all of the buried images, all of the proof that he meant nothing to Sasuke.

The first time they spent his birthday together, Sasuke still yearned for Itachi's touch – and he got it. Naruto had been forced to both listen and watch them to have sex, helplessly chained to a wall.

Their first festival together, he had been attacked by Akatsuki. A clone of Sasuke had been made to replace him – and was quickly disposed of – while he had gone off with Itachi.

The night before their first Christmas, the bastard of a boyfriend disappeared to enjoy another festival with Itachi. He had fallen asleep, and when Naruto had finally gone to look for him, he was being carried on Itachi's back. Sasuke had exhausted himself our of pure enjoyment of spending the day with his beloved brother.

The first Valentine's Day together, Sasuke wasn't even there. He had disappeared without a word before sunrise and didn't even bother to return until after midnight, leaving his displays of affection wasted.

The mark of Sasuke's chest that he found, declaring his heart as Itachi's.

With a deafening roar, Naruto charged for the lone Uchiha, crimson eyes narrowed into slits. Uchiha Sasuke was going to pay for his heart break.


	2. Chapter 2

When the roar reached his ears, Sasuke glanced back over his shoulder as he wiped the tears away. He hardly had any time to react – other than widening his eyes at whom was coming his way – before a hand plowed through the center of his chest. The Uchiha's lips parted in a silent cry, blood spilling onto the offending hand.

"SASUKE-KUN!! NARUTO!!" emerald eyes widened in horror and Sakura took off in a full-blown run toward her teammates. As she ran, tears welled in her eyes as a result of what she had just witnessed. She knew that both, Sasuke and Naruto, had their problems, but it had never come to Naruto outright _attacking_ the only person that he truly loved...

When she reached them, Naruto had violently pulled his hand away from Sasuke's chest, drawing forth more blood. Sasuke held onto his chest, although it was a futile attempt to stop the bleeding. The medic-nin immediately made a move to help her friend, but a violent swipe and a low, threatening growl from Naruto froze her where she stood.

The Uchiha blinked several times, attempting to clear his blurring vision. That didn't help; it only served to make it worse. Slowly, he lifted his head, glancing up at his Kyuubified spouse. He opened his mouth to question Naruto, but he was forced onto the ground, a foot digging into the gaping wound on his chest. Words did not escape Sasuke's mouth, only a choked cry.

"You're a cheating, lying bastard, Uchiha Sasuke."

Sakura was crying out in the background, pleasing to the enraged Naruto to let her heal Sasuke's injuries, taking a small step forward, finding her feet again.

Naruto snapped his head back, growling at the medic-nin, "Take another step forward and I'll kill you, pink bitch."

Again, Sakura froze. No more words escaped her then, though the tears continued to flow regardless as she watched, helpless.

"Na... Naru...to..." The dying Uchiha coughed, hacking up blood. The image of his Kyuubified spouse had since gone blurry... and he felt the sudden urge to sleep despite his injuries. He blinked several times, trying to satisfy said urge by closing his eyes for a few seconds with each blink.

"Don't close your eyes!"

Upon hearing Sakura's broken cry, Sasuke slowly opened them. He didn't like the look on Naruto's face, or what he could make of it anyway. He reached a shaky hand out, weakly grasping the Jinchuuriki's ankle. A low growl reached his ears from the contact before he cried out, Naruto pressing his foot into Sasuke further and forcing the wind out of his lungs.

"Na..." Sasuke couldn't breathe. The foot continued to apply pressure and he could feel his ribs starting to give, threatening to be crushed under Naruto's weight.

"You're nothing but trash, bitch. I'm sick of looking at you, so why don't you just die?" Naruto gave a toothy smirk and stomped onto the brunette's chest. The cracking of multiple bones could be heard, and his smirk only grew. Sasuke's hand slipped limply off of his ankle and landed on the soiled ground with a soft thud, unmoving.

Sasuke did not cry out in agony this time. The last thing that his mind could register was the Kyuubi's toothy smirk. His vision faded completely into darkness, but he no longer possessed the strength to even close his eyes.

The blond swayed as Kyuubi's rage left him. He blinked several times before glancing down at the body he was standing on. Crimson eyes stared back at him, dull and dead. Slowly, he removed his foot before sinking down onto his knees. He wasn't surprised that his anger had gotten out of control and killed the person he...

Something wet splashed onto Sasuke's face, causing Naruto to blink. He didn't even realize that he had started crying. He reached over to brush off the lone tear on Sasuke's face before moving to close his eyes. He didn't bother to stop his own tears; he let them fall, knowing that he had held them in for years, trying to stay strong in hopes that Sasuke would change.

Naruto heard the faint rustle of grass behind him as Sakura went to gather Itachi's body; she had cried herself out for the time being. He left her to her medical duties with the older Uchiha.

"Sasuke..." Naruto gave a small hiccup, leaning down to cradle the limp body in his arms, holding Sasuke in a tight embrace. "You're such a fucking moron... Stupid, selfish bastard... I loved you, too..."

"Naruto." Sakura stopped behind the sobbing blond, carrying Itachi's body on her back for the medical staff to take care of. "We need to head back. And... tell Tsunade-sama about what happened." When she was given a small nod in response, she turned and started on her way back. They weren't all that far from the village. It wouldn't take long for them to get there and give the mission report after handing the bodies over.

Naruto pulled himself away from the body and finally wiped his tears off on the sleeve of his shirt. He then wrapped his arms around Sasuke and picked up him as he got onto his feet, carrying him bridal-style as he followed his teammate.

Whatever awaited him in Konoha, he knew that he would face death for killing the man in his arms. He just hoped that Tsunade would grant him one last request.


	3. Chapter 3

So little response makes me sad ;; I'm just gonna guess everyone was the smutty fics and not the nonsmutty ones. D: I write more than just smut, 'kay. Thank you Just be amazed I'm not putting this off, I know it amazes me XD

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When they reached Kohona, it began to rain. Naruto and Sakura made their way to the hospital, leaping from rooftop to rooftop to avoid as much of the civilian population as possible.

Arriving at the hospital, the two touched down lightly on the ground. A couple of the members of the medic squad had been on standby outside when the team had been gone for over an hour. They took the Uchihas' bodies before rushing into the building behind them to begin their assigned tasks.

Naruto made a move to follow, but Sakura stopped him by grabbing the blond's wrist. Azure eyes glanced back at emerald ones, letting his out-stretched hand fall limply to his side.

"Come on." Sakura offered a small smile before taking his hand, giving it a light squeeze. Naruto only gave a node and followed after. He didn't mind Sakura holding his hand; he knew that it was one of the few things she could do to cheer him up.

Though, was there any way to be cheered up, now that he had been the one to end his spouse's life? If Tsunade went easy on him (which was highly doubtful, he knew), and sent him to prison... Really, what was the point in living? Yes, he still looked forward to becoming Hokage.

However, since he and Sasuke had gotten together, he started seeing the now-deceased Uchiha standing next to him. They would be atop Hokage Mansion, overlooking the village below, Naruto wearing Sandaime's robes... the villagers ecstatic with enthusiasm... Uchiha Sasuke standing beside him, wearing that bastardly smirk that he grew to love...

In the fit of his rage, in the blink of an eye, it was gone. Even the vivid image that Naruto had come up with was now fading with each step he took toward Tsunade's office.

If the Uchiha had only run away again, he would've been more than happy to chase after him. Naruto had just about everything to get the revenge-bound teen back. The vigorous training, almost killing Jiraiya, multiple burns from overexerting his chakra, the long, sleepless nights...

He was surprised when both he and Jiraiya had come across Sasuke while traveling to their next destination. Like today, it had been raining. At first, the then-teenaged Naruto had been ecstatic at finding Sasuke by chance; it definitely saved both him and the sennin beside him the trouble of searching for him, then fighting for him. Though, by how battered his clothes had been, it was obvious Sasuke had gone through a lot in order to escape Orochimaru.

A weak smirk tugged at Naruto's lips. If only had Sasuke run away... if only he hadn't killed him... He would still do anything for him, no doubt.

The blond was brought out of his thoughts when Tsunade's muffled voice reached his ears. He blinked as Sakura opened the door and lead them inside. He couldn't help but swallow the lump in his throat. Time to face the music.

"Where is Uchiha Sasuke?" Tsunade frowned as she observed the two remaining members of Team 7.

Both nin averted her gaze. There was a moment of silence before the sannin opened her mouth to question the two, but Naruto stopped her, blue eyes still focused on the floor.

"Sasuke's... dead. I... snapped, and... I killed him." Finally, he looked up and offered the shocked Hokage a bittersweet smile, tears welling up once more.

"I-I'm sorry, shishou, I could... I tried, but..." Sakura's voice shook, as did her arms. She pulled her hand away from Naruto, shoulders shaking with the second onslaught of tears. She wasn't even on her feet long before sinking to her knees.

"Sakura...chan..." Naruto knelt down next to his friend and pulled her to his shoulder, holding her close as she sobbed.

Tsunade glanced at the blood-covered hand, now drying and flaking off. That was all she needed to know.

"Naruto... You know this means—"

"I know." The same bittersweet smile graced his features. It didn't do him justice at all. "I think I'd rather die than go to prison anyway, baa-chan."

Sakura snapped her head up, staring at Naruto with wide eyes. He didn't just say what she thought she did. And how could he, anyway?! Naruto... Naruto had so much to look forward to, and so many people now depended on him, so how—

Naruto glanced down at Sakura before looking away, "I killed Sasuke, I deserve it. It's nice that Sasuke got a second chance for betraying the village, but... this is different, isn't it?"A weak, forced chuckle shook his shoulders, "If I just went to prison... I wouldn't be the same. I'd still be dead..."

It was true and he knew it. If the village council refused to execute him, then he'd be nothing but a living shell. Sasuke was like a drug to him and going cold turkey was just... suicide.

There was the sound of rustling papers and the scooting of a chair. Naruto glanced up at the Hokage as she walked over to them. She knelt down in front of him, a firm hand on his shoulder, "Are you sure that you want this, Naruto? To just _die_? I'll still have to talk with the elders about this, you know. None of us can just up and--"

"Kill me?" Naruto forced another laugh, "That's treason, right? You've always said you'd kill whoever went against you, baa-chan. I just..." Naruto bit his lip.

Sasuke had a will, he knew. Actually, it was Sasuke _and_ Itachi's will – they had written it together from what he saw. Itachi had written out the names of their family members and friends and each listed what they would be given if one of them should die in two very distinct, yet obviously different, sets of writing. He looked it up when he was last helping Sakura in the hospital. Of course, with everyone but Itachi and Sasuke dead, it was just about useless.

Right now, he was hoping that Tsunade would realize this and would be able to grant what he was about to ask. If he just shook it off and kept quite, he would regret it from beyond the grave. It was too important to him.

"What is it, Naruto?"

"Can you... grant me one last thing?" A nod. "I want to be buried with Sasuke, next to him."

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Sorry if the second half's just corny. I felt I should've written more than just three handwritten pages, so I kept on writing from where I had left off at school (I had 2 hours in speech, what else was I going to do? D:). If it sucks, you can tell me in a civil manner, "It sucks." I prefer it over the flaming xD 


	4. Chapter 4

Until Tsunade could arrange a meeting with the elders, she had sent Naruto down to the basement. (Of course, knowing the two elders, it might take a while; they were never available when she needed them, but they were when she _didn't_) A few ANBU had been sent down with Naruto to watch him, leaving Sakura to return home alone. While the Hokage continued to try and hold a meeting with the elders, she allowed Naruto's friends to visit him with an escort, though he was becoming a shadow of his former self.

Finally, the sannin was able to get a hold of the two people she needed an audience with the most. It had taken a couple of weeks, but she finally caught them. She quickly briefed them on the situation and Naruto's desires. She waited patiently as the two held a private conversation regarding Naruto's situation.

The two nodded finally before facing Tsunade, "All right. We'll grant Uzumaki Naruto's desire to be with Uchiha Sasuke." Koharu said. Homura nodded in agreement, "It'll ultimately protect Konoha as well."

Tsunade's temple twitched, but remained silently. She merely turned on her heels and made her way downstairs to tell Naruto the news.

"Naruto... You should at least eat something," Iruka urged, but his plea fell upon deaf ears. Naruto had been sitting in his cell for the past two weeks, hardly saying a word and hardly eating. The last time that he ate, Iruka recalled, was when Tsunade had the ANBU on-duty force-feed him, and that was two days ago.

Though he was hardly visible in the dank lighting, he could tell that Naruto had lost weight. He frowned upon this, of course, which was why he kept nagging at Naruto to at least eat to get his strength back so he could train...

Iruka's thoughts were cut short as the sound of the basement's heavy door opened, pouring light down the staircase and onto the small group. Kakashi noticed how Naruto shied away from it.

Tsunade descended the stairs and walked over to the group of three, nodding to the ANBU as she passed him.

"Tsunade-sama..." Sakura took a step toward her master, emerald eyes pleading. Tsunade glanced at her before shifting her gaze onto Naruto, "Uzumaki Naruto. Your desires will be fulfilled. The funeral will be held in five hours."

At this, Naruto lifted his head from his bent legs and arms and looked up at Tsunade. His eyes had lost all signs of the shine that they always held, now nothing more than two dull, lifeless orbs of blue. The ANBU moved and unlocked the cell door before walking in to help Naruto to his feet. With a nod from Tsunade, he led Naruto back upstairs.

The sannin made a move to follow after, but stopped to glance back at the small group, "I suggest telling your friends." Again, she made a move to leave, but at that moment one of the medical nins stopped in front of her.

"We're finished gathering all the data from Uchiha Itachi's body, Hokage-sama. Where shall we burn it?" The blonde Hokage blinked at the medic nin in front of her, pondering over the many sites they used for this purpose.

"Uchiha estate." The nin stared at her, but Tsunade gave no explanation as she walked past him and up the stairs. It was fitting, she thought. There shouldn't be any problems with that.

--

By the time of the funeral, it had gotten cloudy. The villagers gathered atop the Hokage Tower to pay their respects, while those closest to Naruto were already crying – well, most, anyway. No one paid attention to the black smoke rising to greet the heavy storm clouds.

A flash of lightning, a low rumble of thunder. Koharu, Tsunade, and Homura all stood at the front, behind a single picture of both Sasuke and Naruto. Stepping up, Koharu cleared her throat to begin the service as it started to rain.

"We are gathered here today to mourn the lives of..."

--

_Sasuke fidgeted as he watched his parents take their place before two coffins to pray. His grandparents had just passed away, and it was in their will to be buried with the other for eternal rest._

"_Be still, Sasuke." Itachi patted his brother lightly on the head to calm him, but that only drew Sasuke's gaze upon him, "Hm?"_

"_Nii-san... If... if something happens to us, um..." The child flushed, quickly looking away. Curious, Itachi knelt down so he was eye-level with Sasuke, gently shifting his head so Sasuke could look at him. _

"_If something happens to us?"_

"_I-If something happens... nii-san, I want to be buried next to you!" Itachi blinked at him before offering a smile. He let go of Sasuke's hand that he had been holding and offered him a pinky._

"_All right. Pinky promise, Sasuke." Sasuke's eyes lit up and nodded, intertwining his smaller pinky with Itachi's, "Pinky promise!"_

Fin.

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Bah. I never figured that getting this chapter out would be difficult x.o But, after about a month or so, here it is. Probably isn't the best, really... but if I ever feel up to it or when my muse slaps me with this, I'll try and revise it.

But other than that, I hope everyone enjoyed this Took me about a year to get around to xD


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